Tyler and I rarely take ourselves on vacation. We love our own space, and most often spend our free time together within the comfort of our little home. But as our 10th wedding anniversary got closer, we started putting away for a little trip together, and got excited thinking about where we could go.
In talking about the options and ideas of places to go with one of my bffs Mary Brunst, she mentioned that her and and her hubby spent a day in Martha’s Vineyard on their New England honeymoon and absolutely loved it! Right away, it felt right - that’s where were were meant to go!
Every aspect of our trip felt truly blessed, and each detail went on without a hitch. The timing of everything was spot on, the flow of each day was easy, and the overall vibe was just what we like. We wanted to go into it with an idea of what to do, but without an itinerary that we had to stick to because we wanted to just go up and feel things out and just explore… while at the same time, not missing out on anything we should do or see while there. It ended up being the perfect balance of both worlds. :)
Luckily, we enjoy most all of the same activities like hiking and spending time in nature, boutique shopping for fun things to put around the house, going to nice restaurants with killer cuisine, sampling delicious wine, investing in small businesses and mom and pop shops, and of course - taking pictures. So we wanted our vacation to consist of all of those things and this one definitely did in every single way.
Our venture began with an early flight from Baltimore to Providence, Rhode Island. We wanted to get there early and have a car on the island, so this route was the most sensible all around. Plus it gave us a chance to experience a bit of what it’s like up there, seeing it while driving rather than from a plane window.
Our flight was quick, about 45 minutes, and once we landed and got our rental car, we drove for a bit before stopping at a cute little place called Crabapples for brunch before heading the ferry in Woods Hole. I had an omelette, and Tyler got the cranberry apple pancakes.. and they were delicious! I’m going to try and recreate them at home!
I had never been on a ferry before! So it was fun to experience that. All of the cars were packed in tightly and then some people got out of their cars to look around and spend the 45-minute ride breathing in the fresh ocean air. I was one of them, especially because I was starting to feel a little woozy sitting in the car. I loved, seeing the ocean, people-watching, and looking out over the ship to the coastline and other islands as we made our way to the Vineyard Haven port.
We drove off the ferry ship and headed about a mile inland to our destination: The Charles & Charles Bed and Breakfast, on Summer Street in Vineyard Haven. We pulled in and were immediately greeted by Charles with a happy hello and smiling face, (he had his mask on of course, but we knew he was smiling because of his kind and cheery eyes) instructing us on where to park and meet him so he could show us to our suite. We assume there are two Charles’ but only met and interacted with this Charles, and he was absolutely lovely. :)
The Inn used to be a farm, and is now tucked under shady trees with beautiful lush landscape of flowers and shrubs all around… It’s cozy, quaint, private, and intimate, with the feeling of being secluded and peaceful, while being only a few blocks from Main Street in downtown Vineyard Haven. Each room is named after towns on the island, and he had us set up in the apartment-like suite in the corner called West Tisbury. It was fresh and clean, waiting for us to settle in. He’d chilled a bottle of wine for us, and had a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers inside too. The king-size bed had Egyptian cotton sheets, and the rooms felt crisp, cool, and fresh. The decor was cute with a coastal, homey vibe. I loved the whale Vineyard Vines inspired coffee table in the living room. :) There were two homemade oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (which were absolutely out of this world…) sitting on the dining room table with a little list of things we needed to know about our stay, like how breakfast by the (saltwater) pool would be served each morning from 8:30 - 9:30, wifi password info, etc… We truly felt like we were at home… Charles made sure we were set and comfortable, and wished us a great first day on the Vineyard…
So after settling into our room, putting our clothes in the dresser, and organizing our belongings, freshened up, and stepped outside onto our cute little porch to enjoy a glass of the wine Charles had left for us, which was delicious, and a nice little way to kick off the vaca.
Then we decided to just get in the car and drive... We headed down to Main St. and pulled into a little parking lot right on the water, just up from the ferry port called Owen Park to get out and look at the boats. We ended up running into Carissa and Alex, a couple of mine from several years ago, who now live on the island and love it! Her mom was there, and more of their extended family, crabbing off of the dock together. It was so fun to see a familiar friendly face! We caught up a bit of course, and Carissa gave us a rundown of what to do and see in the several days of our trip before we hopped back into the car for some more exploring..
We ended up in Edgartown where we stopped for a burger and walked around the shops a bit before heading out to a small beach, where we walked around and looked for shells. We found some really pretty ones, hopped back into the car, and headed back to the place to rest up for a big day of more exploring the next day.
If you're ever interested in visiting MV, we highly, and I mean HIGHLY, recommend staying at the C&C… Though we have’t stayed anywhere else on the island, it’s one of the only ones with a pool, and every detail was just perfect for us. It’s a nice little hideaway, very reasonably priced, and just lovely. And as a side note, they're open from May to October.
Day 2: Our Aquinnah Lighthouse visit, coming soon! :)